New Oak Ridge dog park opens

It may have appeared that way Monday when the city opened it’s first dog park in West Oak Ridge.

A dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the new PetSafe Dog Park at Big Turtle Park with city and county officials, residents and many “four-legged friends” on hand and on leash.

City Manager Mark Watson said if he could he “would build them all over the city.” He called the new park a “significant asset of the community.”

The dog park concept started about five years ago. But it was thanks primarily to a $100,000 donation that the PetSafe Dog Park got under way about eight months ago. Knoxville-based Radio Systems Corp., a manufacturer of pet products and maker of the PetSafe brand, made that donation earlier this year.

With the donation, the city’s Recreation and Parks Department Advisory Board and Dog Park Committee started the research and planned the park’s design.

The new park includes separate fenced areas for small dogs and large dogs, benches, water fountains and shaded areas.

Watson joked that now that the park is finished, the “East Enders” want one, too.

Steve Baker, Radio Systems representative, said that his company “supports animal welfare” and “likes giving back to the community.”

After giving a short history about the Dog Park, Dog Park Committee Chair Bridgette Ellis thanked Committee members, city staff, and others involved in the design and construction.

Officials and “some friends” gathered around the opening gates and cut the ribbon to the park before several of the four-legged participants were turned loose in their designated areas.